After Dell announced on March 28th that it would begin offering PCs with Linux installed at the factory (pending resolution of some driver problems), we heard yesterday that it will continue offering Windows XP on the Inspiron 1405, 1705, 1505 and 1501, and the Dimension E520 and 521. This is in line with growing industry concerns about Windows Vista’s problematic operation with a wide range of peripheral devices and non-Micro$oft programs.

Since XP is the last fully-operational Windows system — Vista obviously is still in beta, whether or not Redmond wants to admit it — Dell’s move is a statement by the big dog to which Micro$oft will have to listen.

The next big question: where is Dell going to find bloatware that will run on a Linux kernel?

[tags]operating system, os, vista, xp, linux, dell[/tags]